1. Field of the Invention
The present invention is directed to motorized retractable coverings for architectural openings and more particularly to a system for minimizing noise created when an electric motor is used to reversibly drive a roller about which a fabric for the covering can be wrapped and unwrapped.
2. Description of the Relevant Art
Coverings for architectural openings such as windows, doors, archways, and the like, have assumed numerous forms for many years. Many such coverings are retractable and have a headrail in which a rotatable roller is horizontally disposed and supports a flexible fabric that depends from the roller. Depending upon the direction of rotation of the roller, the fabric is either wrapped or unwrapped from the roller. The roller can be rotated with a control system that might be manual using control cords or the like or might be motor driven and operable from a remote location particularly where the architectural opening is not easily accessible.
Motor driven coverings for architectural openings have previously been louder in operation than desirable. Accordingly, attempts have been made to reduce the noise which is typically vibratory in its source.
For example, the drive shaft from the motor or its gear-reduction unit typically carries a drive disk. The drive disk is operatively engaged with the roller in the headrail of the covering to rotate the roller in one direction or the other. The connection between the drive shaft and the drive disk has been made of a soft material to reduce the vibration that might otherwise be transferred from the drive shaft of the motor to the drive disk.
The present invention has been developed to further minimize the noise created in a motor-driven covering for an architectural opening.